Once-Ler's Real Family
by MWolfL
Summary: Ted, Audrey, and Ted's mom find out a surprising fact about the Once-ler, a fact that even surprises Once-ler himself a little. Further things are explained, like how Once-ler got the last seed in the first place. Once-lerXNorma
1. Catching Up

A.N. Certain things that won't be explained in this story will be explained in my third Lorax story Ted's Future Family, so if you have any questions please wait until you read Ted's Future Family first. Then if you have any questions after that you can ask me in a review or a separate PM, whichever you prefer.

Well, as those who saw the movie remember Lorax had returned to Once-ler. The two of them entered Once-ler's Lurkhim for pancakes and talk. It was now three to four months after Ted planted the first Truffula seed.

"So, you've been hanging out in another forest?" Once-ler guessed as he cooked some more pancakes.

"Yeah, with the animals." Lorax smiled. "I was able to come back sooner since, you know, I can travel quickly but the rest of the animals should be here in a couple days or so."

"Really? They're coming back?" Once-ler was surprised.

"Of course, this is their home after all. Besides Melvin and Pipsqueak want to see you again."

"Melvin? He's still alive?" Once-ler turned around very surprised.

"Yeah, he stayed alive so that he could see you one last time before moving on." Lorax explained. "He still cares about you, he just had to make sure that the other animals would be okay. Plus he didn't want to live amongst the pollution."

"Oh." Once-ler smiled. "I'm glad he still cares about me, he was pretty much my only friend before I met you and the other animals. Especially Pipsqueak, poor guy. He was closer to me than the other animals were...before I ruined everything."

"That...that was because he lost his parents before you arrived. He saw you as a father-figure...or at least an older brother-figure."

Once-ler reacted as if someone had hit him on his back with a heavy object.

"Great." He groaned. "Now I feel even worse."

"Don't worry, Pipsqueak forgave you." Lorax smiled, taking a sip of milk. "Oh, almost forgot, Melvin has a surprise for you."

"Really?" Once-ler returned to the table with more pancakes. "What is it?"

"If I told you it wouldn't be a surprise." Lorax smirked as he took a pancake off the stack.

"You haven't changed at all have you?" Once-ler smirked back.

"No...but I'm glad you changed back to the man you were when you first arrived here." Lorax admitted.

"Not entirely...I'm not as spry as I used to be." Once-ler shrugged.

"True, but I meant who you are on the inside. You're back to being the kindhearted music-and-pancake loving guy I became friends with."

Once-ler smiled at Lorax, very touched.


	2. Big Surprises

It was now the next day. Once-ler prepared to just water the Truffula saplings and hang out with Lorax, when he heard the sound of a motor. It was Ted's scooter, Ted had arrived with Audrey, Grammy Norma, and Mrs. Wiggins. Normally his scooter could only seat three, so he had rented a sidecar so that his mom could come too (she preferred the sidecar to actually being on the scooter).

"Ted!" Once-ler smiled. "I haven't seen you in months."

"Sorry about that, the town wanted to build a bridge across that one ditch back there and clear away the old chopping machines before allowing anyone to travel on this road." Ted explained.

"I'm glad they did." Once-ler approved. "So, who are your companions?"

Ted, Audrey, and Mrs. Wiggins took their helmets off, got off the scooter, and went closer to Once-ler but Grammy Norma stayed behind for some reason.

"This is Audrey, the one who really wanted the tree." Ted introduced. "And this is my mom."

Once-ler looked at Mrs. Wiggins, first name Sally, and stared at her. Sally looked at him with confusion but decided to talk about another subject.

"So you're the one my son had been visiting." Sally said. "Well, despite the dangers we went through, especially in Ted's case, I have to thank you for saving that seed. These Truffulas have really been improving Thneedville."

Once-ler winced.

"Still calling it that huh?" He said.

"Yeah, we're keeping the name for historical reasons but the motto has been changed." Ted explained. "The town's motto is now 'Everybody Needs a Tree'."

"Fitting change." Once-ler smiled; he then turned to Audrey. "So, you're the one Ted got the seed for."

"That's right, I've always loved trees and nature." Audrey smiled. "And I'm really grateful that it's here for all of us to enjoy."

Once-ler smiled approvingly. He didn't say so out loud but he was glad Ted had good taste in girls. Or women in high school if you prefer.

"Oh almost forgot, my grandma is here too." Ted remembered.

"Your grandma?" Once-ler said.

"Yeah, Grammy Norma, she's the one who told me about you." Ted turned around, missing Once-ler's shocked expression. "Grammy? What are you doing back there?"

"I wanted Once-ler to meet Audrey and Sally first before seeing me again." Grammy Norma now moved into view.

"'Again'?" Sally, Ted's mom that is, was very confused.

Once-ler dropped his mouth open upon seeing Grammy Norma.

"Norma? Is it really you?" He said.

"Hello Once." Norma smiled. "I've really missed you."

Once-ler bent down and hugged Grammy Norma. She returned the hug.

"I've really missed you too." He said.

"Wait, you two know each other?" Audrey was surprised.

"I figured they did a little since Grammy knew about him." Ted shrugged. "But I didn't know they were this close."

"Closer than you think." Grammy Norma broke free from the hug and turned around. "Ted, this is your grandfather."

Now it was Sally, Audrey, and Ted's turn to drop their mouths open.

"But...but that means..." Sally realized.

"That's right dear, he's your father." Grammy Norma confirmed; she then looked at Ted. "Ted?"

While Sally and Audrey had kinda snapped out of their shock Ted was still frozen. Audrey jabbed him in the side to wake him up.

"GRANDFATHER?" He burst out, startling everyone; he then clapped his hands over his mouth and blushed. "Uh, sorry." He said awkwardly. "But seriously you mean this whole time I've been visiting my grandfather?"

"That's right." Grammy Norma smiled.

"Unbelievable...this whole time I was telling my story to my own grandson." Once-ler held his head in a hand.

"Apparently not the whole story." Sally pointed out. "How did you two...I mean..."

"How did we meet and end up together?" Once-ler guessed. "Well, it's a long story."

"Probably longer than the one about your family cutting down all the trees." Ted remarked. "Is that why you didn't tell me about having a girlfriend?"

"Wife, actually, and that was part of the reason. The other was because the main point was about how important trees are." Once-ler explained. "I wanted to get right to the point and give you the seed."

"Ah." Ted understood.

"Anyway, how we ended up together..." Grammy Norma started the story.


	3. Once-ler and Norma's First Meeting

It turns out they met not long after thneeds had become popular. In fact it was a couple days after Once-ler got his first mob of orders. He had managed to make enough to fill those orders plus a few extra. Norma had approached him after he filled the orders. Back then she looked kind of like Sally except she was a bit shorter, plus obviously her outfit and glasses were different.

"Hello." Norma said.

"Oh hi, here for a thneed?" Once-ler smiled.

"Sure am, in fact I wanted to get one earlier but I always had trouble getting past crowds." Norma smiled back.

"No problem, I have a few left over. What color would you like?"

"That pink one, and thank you." Norma took the pink thneed and paid Once-ler.

"You're welcome." Once-ler accepted the money. "I'm just glad you were able to get one, they've been selling out quickly. Well, I'd better get home and make some more."

"Can I come with you?" Norma asked. "I've always wanted to visit the valley but it's too far to get there on foot and I don't have any other way of traveling."

"Really?" Once-ler wasn't used to strangers wanting to be with him. "Well...it's all right with me. What about you Melvin?"

Melvin nodded.

"Okay then. Melvin is usually wary of strangers so if he's okay with you joining us then you can." Once-ler got onto the driver seat of his wagon.

"Great." Norma grinned, sitting next to Once-ler. "Thank you Melvin."

Melvin didn't say anything. Once-ler chuckled.

"He's not much of a talker." He explained.

"The strong yet silent type huh?" Norma chuckled back.

"Yeah, and good thing on the strong part too." Once-ler agreed.

Melvin just rolled his eyes and started back for the Truffula forest.

"So, we haven't introduced ourselves yet." Norma realized. "I'm Norma."

"My name is Once-ler."

"Once-ler?"

"My mom's idea...to her I'm a mistake she'll only make 'once'."

"I don't think you're a mistake." Norma frowned.

"Really? Most people think of me as weird or annoying. Or useless." Once-ler hung his head a little.

"I don't, I think you're unique. That's why I wanted a thneed too, they're unique." Norma smiled.

Once-ler turned to her, surprised, and then smiled.

"Thanks." He said. "I needed to hear that."

"Aw don't listen to those who think poorly of you." Norma playfully punched Once-ler's arm. "They're just too lazy to take the time to get to know you."

Once-ler just smiled.

They continued talking as they headed for the forest and became fast friends. When they reached the forest the animals hid upon seeing Norma, which caused her to look around with confusion.

"That's weird, I heard that there were animals out here." She said.

"They've been a little shy of humans since I arrived." Once-ler explained. "It's okay guys, this is Norma she's a friend of mine." He called out.

The animals slowly started to come out. Pipsqueak was the first one to approach Norma.

"Oh a Barb-a-loot, I've read about you guys." Norma smiled. "Well aren't you cute?"

"That's Pipsqueak." Once-ler said.

"Hey there Pipsqueak." Norma scratched Pipsqueak's tummy.

Pipsqueak giggled and fell on his back so that Norma could continue scratching his tummy. He then got up and made a begging position.

"Okay okay, I know what you want." Once-ler chuckled as he took a marshmallow out of his pocket. "Here you go buddy."

He tossed the marshmallow to Pipsqueak, who chomped it down.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Norma asked.

"It probably isn't but these guys won't leave you alone until you give them one." Once-ler shrugged.

"Yeah, they're unfortunately too tasty to give up." Lorax now appeared.

Norma stared at him.

"Wait a minute...are you the Lorax?" Norma asked.

"You know about him?" Once-ler was surprised.

"Me and pretty much everyone else in town." Norma shrugged. "He's a fable character who protects forests...though I guess the fable part isn't true since he's standing right there."

"Huh, I guess his stories never reached my home." Once-ler shrugged.

"Probably." Lorax agreed. "I'm not well known all over, just in certain areas. So Beanpole, when were you going to tell me that you were bringing another human here?"

"Beanpole?" Norma tried not to laugh.

"Not my idea." Once-ler muttered.

"I like to give humans plant-related nicknames." Lorax smiled. "But seriously..."

"Look, Norma here wanted to visit the valley since she didn't have an easy way of getting here before and Melvin agreed to let her come so-" Once-ler explained exasperatedly.

"Melvin?" Lorax turned to the mule.

Melvin nodded, smiling.

"Huh, if he trusts her then I guess she's okay." Lorax shrugged.

Once-ler looked very relieved.

So Norma and Once-ler started hanging out every day. Norma, knowing how to knit, even started helping him make his thneeds. Now and then Once-ler would play his guitar for her, which she enjoyed a lot. She also hung out with the animals as well, and became close to Pipsqueak and Lorax. She even joined their card games.


	4. The Music of the Heart

It was now a week after Norma and Once-ler first met. Norma was busy with her job in town but promised to visit later that afternoon. Once-ler, in the meantime, decided to take a break from knitting and play his guitar. It had strangely been getting harder to knit thneeds on his own, his mind kept wandering. So, he decided to let his mind wander. He hopped onto his bed and started playing his guitar. The music sailed out the window, allowing the animals to hear it as well.

A few minutes later, there was a knock at Once-ler's door. Then Lorax slowly opened it.

"Beanpole?" He said.

"Hey Lorax." Once-ler smiled. "What's wrong, did my music disturb the others?"

"No...the opposite actually." Lorax said awkwardly. "Uh, what were you playing just now?"

"No idea, I was just playing what I felt." Once-ler shrugged.

Lorax looked at him stunned.

"What's wrong?" Once-ler asked, confused.

"Nothing's wrong, but you'd better take a look." Lorax opened the door more and gestured for Once-ler to come over.

Once-ler got off the bed and headed for the door. He was surprised by what he saw: all over the forest animal couples - bear, swan, and fish - were cuddling.

"You were playing a romantic tune." Lorax explained.

"But...wait I was playing what I felt and if I was playing a romantic tune..." It was taking a while for Once-ler to grasp what had happened.

"You're in love." Lorax looked a bit annoyed about having to say it for Once-ler.

"I'm in love?" Once-ler still wasn't quite getting it, but it didn't take long for him to fully grasp it. "I'm in love!" He whooped.

Lorax was even more stunned.

"Geez Beanpole, you act like you have never been in love before." He remarked.

"I haven't." Once-ler admitted.

Lorax widened his eyes at that.

"In the past I had concentrated so much on becoming a success that I never stopped to think about dating." Once-ler explained. "I can't believe it...I'm actually in love. I thought I'd never feel this kind of love."

"So, I'm guessing the lucky girl is Chrysanth." Lorax smirked.

Chrysanth was his nickname for Norma, due to her curly hair. Of course the full flower name was Chrysanthemum but Lorax had decided to shorten it a little in Norma's case. It fit her spunky personality better.

"Has to be, I don't really know any other girls around here." Once-ler grinned; he then leaned against a bookcase and put his hand over his heart. "Norma." He sighed happily, her name sounding as soft and sweet as a marshmallow.

"So, you gonna tell her?" Lorax raised an eyebrow.

"Of course...later today, when I pick her up from work." Once-ler grinned.

You see he was so happy about feeling romantic love for Norma he didn't stop to think about whether she'd return his feelings or not.

So, later that afternoon, he and Melvin headed for town. Along the way he picked up new thneed orders and dropped off thneeds to previous orders. Then he met Norma in front of the flower shop she worked at.

"Right on time." She grinned. "Not bad for someone who doesn't have a pocketwatch."

"I go by the clock in my hut, plus Melvin is really good about being on time." Once-ler grinned back. "Shall we? I packed a picnic for us for dinner."

"Sure, I love your cooking." Norma accepted his hand and let him gently pull her onto the wagon.

Norma had Once-ler's pancakes before, which was his specialty. However he was good at fixing other kinds of foods too.

They headed back to the forest and greeted the animals once they arrived. Once-ler then took them to their special spot near the river. Despite the river incident Once-ler hadn't developed a fear of it. He was still a bit wary of actually being in the river but was okay with being near it. They opened the picnic basket and started to eat. Fortunately there weren't any interruptions, Lorax had decided to distract some of the animals with a card game.

"I want to thank you for letting me come with you here that first time we met." Norma said between bites. "The valley has become my favorite place to visit."

"It's no problem, I'm just glad to have a real human friend." Once-ler smiled back. "Though...I wouldn't mind becoming more." He then blushed.

Norma nearly choked on her sandwich.

"Once-ler, are you saying that...?" Norma stared at him with disbelief.

"Yes...I've fallen in love with you. I just realized it today." Once-ler nodded.

Norma then smiled at him.

"Truthfully, I had started to develop feelings for you as well." She admitted.

Once-ler beamed at her. They then drew closer to each other...and kissed.

After that they started dating instead of just hanging out as friends. They started going to restaurants and such in town as well as visiting the valley. This went on for a couple weeks.


	5. Once-ler's First and Last Stand-Up

Then finally, Once-ler's family arrived. Norma had finally managed to get her own car by this point and so took a trip to Once-ler's hut not too long after Lorax met Once-ler's family. She was stunned by the 'home away from home' that was now next to his hut.

"Once-ler?" She saw Once-ler talking with some people. "Is this your family?"

"That's right, this is my mom Isabella, my two older brothers Brett and Chet, and my Aunt Grizelda and Uncle Ubb." Once-ler said. "Everyone, this is Norma, my girlfriend."

Isabella, Grizelda, and Ubb looked stunned and Brett and Chet looked surprised.

"Girlfriend?" Chet said.

"Well it's about time, I was starting to think that you were a cake boy." Brett teased, punching Once-ler playfully...though due to his strength it was a bit harder than he intended.

"Come on guys." Once-ler said through his teeth, massaging his arm. "Be nice."

"Uh, Oncie dear, can I talk to you for a second?" Isabella said.

"Sure mom. Excuse me Norma."

"No problem." Norma smiled.

"So, how did Once-ler win you over?" Brett asked.

"He's kind, unique, and a lot of fun to be around." Norma explained. "Plus he likes animals."

Brett and Chet smiled at her. But then smiles turned to frowns as they all heard yelling.

"Oncie, I'm just thinking of what's best for you!" Isabella said sternly.

"What's best for me is a girl who loves me the way I am!" Once-ler retorted. "She doesn't have to look like one of those models to be good enough for me!"

Brett, Chet, Grizelda, and Ubb dropped their mouths open. Once-ler had never yelled at Isabella before.

"Look, I love Norma and nothing is going to change that so drop it!" Once-ler finished.

He then stormed back to the group and blushed a little upon seeing them stare at him.

"I guess you heard that huh?" He rubbed the back of his head.

"We sure did..." Norma went over to him and hugged him. "Thank you for standing up for me."

"Of course." Once-ler hugged her back.

Behind Norma he saw Grizelda and Ubb looking unhappy and awkward - respectively - and Brett and Chet looking impressed.

It was about a day later. Norma paid Once-ler another visit and was shocked to find his family chopping down trees. She quickly headed into his hut and found him sadly playing his guitar on the couch.

"Once-ler, your family is chopping down trees!" She said worriedly.

"I know." He sighed.

"Wait...you're letting them?" Norma was shocked.

"Mom said that harvesting took too much time and energy...she was the one who suggested chopping." Once-ler hung his head.

"But your promise to Lorax...why didn't you just tell her off?" She sat down next to him.

"I couldn't...not after yesterday." Once-ler explained. "I don't want to lose her."

Norma gave him a sympathetic look and hugged him.

"Well, you won't lose me." She comforted him.

Once-ler gave her a sad-yet-grateful look.

Sure enough Norma continued dating Once-ler, much to Isabella's disapproval. Months passed and a thneed-making factory was being built. Norma hadn't gained approval from Once-ler's aunt and uncle either, but his brothers were another matter. One day Chet had punched Once-ler playfully on the arm again, and Once-ler walked away massaging his arm very annoyed. Norma, unknown to him, had seen this.

"Hi Brett, Chet." She said, walking up to the twins.

"Oh hi Norma." Brett smiled. "How are things going?"

"Apart from the trees being cut down they're going great-" Norma now stared at him. "Wait, you're being polite to me?"

"Yeah, we like you so why shouldn't we be?" Chet said.

Norma looked surprised.

"I know, mum and our aunt don't like you." Brett shrugged. "But we do. You make Once happy after all."

"So you really do care about him." Norma was happily surprised.

"Why not? He is our brother." Chet shrugged.

"I know, it just didn't seem like it. Okay I guess teasing is a normal sibling thing, but you keep punching him too hard." Norma explained.

Brett and Chet looked guilty.

"We had no idea." Brett admitted. "We thought we were punching him lightly...I guess we don't know our own strength."

So after that conversation, Brett and Chet not only apologized for punching Once-ler painfully in the past but also started punching him a lot lighter.


	6. Once-ler's First Real Family Member

Once the factory was almost completed Once-ler took her on a secret picnic in a secluded section of the remainder of the forest.

"I can't believe how much this valley has changed." Norma said sadly.

"I know." Once-ler sighed. "But mom finally loves me. I can't let her down now."

"Truthfully I think Lorax's opinion is more important than your mother's."

"That's only because you don't care about her approval, I do. I mean she **is** my mother."

"Exactly, mothers are supposed to love their children unconditionally."

"Well I wasn't worth her love. Remember she never wanted me."

"I know but I want you. You're worth my love no matter what."

Once-ler smiled gratefully at her.

"I know, I've always been grateful for your love." Once-ler took something out of his pocket. "And I want to continue feeling your love for the rest of my life."

He showed what was in his pocket to her. It was a ring box. Norma blushed happily.

"Norma will you...marry me?" He asked.

Norma hugged him.

"Of course I will." She smiled.

Once-ler beamed, opened the ring box, and slipped the ring on her finger. Norma gazed at her ring and gasped happily. The stone was in the shape of a Truffula tree. The trunk was orange while the tufts were separated in yellow, red, and pink.

"It's beautiful." She smiled.

"Not as beautiful as you." Once-ler smiled back.

They kissed. When they stopped kissing...

"But what about your family?" Norma pointed out. "I mean I know you'll love me no matter what, but they still don't like me. Except for Brett and Chet."

"Well, then I guess only Brett and Chet will be able to come to the wedding." Once-ler grinned.

Norma grinned back.

Later on she went home and Once-ler secretly took Brett and Chet aside.

"Guys, I have to tell you something but you can't tell anyone else." Once-ler said as soon as they were alone in one of the finished sections of the factory.

"What is it Once?" Brett asked.

"Norma and I are engaged." Once-ler smiled.

Brett and Chet started to cheer but Once-ler clasped his hands over their mouths.

"*Shh!*" He said. "Do you want the rest of the family to hear? Especially mom?"

"Sorry." Chet said once Once-ler removed his hands. "But really this is great."

"Yeah, can we come to the wedding?" Brett asked.

"You and Norma's parents, that's it." Once-ler agreed. "Once everything is ready I'm going to sneak into town. You'd better sneak away after me instead of with me, it'll draw less attention."

Brett and Chet agreed.

Since Once-ler and Norma couldn't have a big ceremony it didn't take long to set everything up. They got their rings and outfits, hired a parson, and that was pretty much it. The only guests, besides Norma's parents and Brett and Chet, were Norma's coworkers from the flower shop she worked at. A few of them were her old childhood friends.

And so the ceremony began. Once-ler and Norma said their own version of the vows:

"To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, now and forever."

The rest of Once-ler's family learned the truth when Once-ler, Norman, Chet, and Brett got back. Grizelda was disapproving, Ubb was neutral, and Isabella was furious. It was too late now though so she did nothing about it.

More time passed. The factory had been completed and was growing larger. Once-ler had now become a greedy business man, with one exception: Norma. Isabella may have taken over Once-ler's business and brain, but Norma still owned his heart. Isabella originally bought Once-ler the green-tinted sunglasses to cloud his view of how bad things had gotten outside, but he still took them off whenever Norma entered the room he was in. Then no matter what he had been doing at the time, even if it was a meeting, he'd go over to her and greet her lovingly. Also they had hidden their rings for fear of losing them, especially with Isabella and the machines around. Norma kept her wedding and engagement rings on a chain around her neck, hidden under her clothes, and Once-ler wore his ring underneath his gloves (one of the reasons why he wore them).

Norma had quit her job at the flower shop after she and Once-ler had married since it was a long trip to town and the extra money wasn't necessary. Despite this she hadn't taken an actual job at the factory. Instead she had a secret one: whenever a tree was cut down the fruits and trunks were tossed aside to be used up in other ways. The fruits were eaten and the trunks were used for fuel and carpentry. Not a lot of the fruits were eaten by humans though, for Norma was sneaking most of them away to give to Lorax and the animals. During one such trip...

"Any luck talking sense into Beanpole?" Lorax asked.

"No, I gave up on that a long time ago." Norma shook her head.

Lorax and the animals looked at her with shock.

"What? But you care about the trees as much as we do, don't you?" Lorax said.

"Of course I do, but you don't understand." Norma sighed. "This isn't Once-ler's fault it's his family's fault."

"But he was the one who broke his promise."

"He didn't want to, and I think he still feels bad about that, but he also felt that he had no choice. You see back when we were dating, before we got married, Once told me about his past. His mom never loved him, never even wanted him, and always considered him to be a mistake and a failure. This drove Once into being obsessed with earning his mom's love, that's why he's doing all this. He just can't see that his mom and aunt and uncle only care about wealth and power and will never really love him. I can't tell him that though, he'd just deny it anyway. And even if he didn't it would hurt him a lot. I can't hurt him."

Lorax fell solemn, and the rest of the animals looked very sad too.

"Then what are we going to do?" Lorax asked.

"There is one chance: talking sense into Once-ler's mom and aunt and uncle. It's a long-shot but worth it." Norma said determinedly.

So that's what she attempted once she got back.

"There you are, I've been looking for you." Norma found Isabella, Grizelda, and Ubb in one of the board rooms. "We have to talk."

"What about?" Isabella said coldly.

"About chopping trees, can't you see that it's a waste? Even though the forest is vast it still has a limit and it won't be long before all the trees get chopped down." Norma said.

"Nonsense, that'll never happen." Isabella said dismissively.

"Are you people so blinded by wealth that you can't eve see reality?" Norma scolded. "Money isn't important, nature is!"

"Nature? Nature is just a waste and a mess." Isabella frowned. "Money pays for things you want and gives you security."

"Nature is what keeps us alive!" Norma was starting to lose her temper. "And there are other things more important than money, like love! Though I guess since none of you have hearts you wouldn't know that!"

"Why you-!" Grizelda punched Norma in the face, knocking her down.

"What is going on here?" An angry voice said.

Startled, everyone turned towards the door and saw a furious Once-ler. Once-ler took off his glasses and entered the room.

"Your so-called wife was being rude to us." Isabella said.

"Well even if she was that was no excuse for punching her!" Once-ler glared at Grizelda. "If you ever do such a thing again I'll cut off your salary! As for the rest of you you had better leave Norma alone from now on, got it?"

Isabella, Grizelda, and Ubb, feeling awkward, left through another door. Once-ler helped Norma up.

"Are you okay?" He asked concernedly.

"I am now that you're here." Norma sighed. "I just wish at least your mom cared about something other than money."

"She does, she cares about me and my brothers and aunt and uncle." Once-ler hugged her. "And even if she never cares about you I always will. I think you'd better stay away from them from now on, it'd break my heart if you got hurt or worse."

"Okay." Norma gave in, hugging him back.

Many months passed, years even. More than half the forest was gone. Norma was paying another visit to the animals.

"I'm sorry nothing has worked out." Lorax said sympathetically, still feeling bad that Norma's attempts had been in vain.

"At least Once still loves me..." Norma was close to tears. "I just don't want to lose him."

"As long as he loves you you won't." Lorax said comfortingly. "I'm sure you're more important to him than money."

"No not to greed, I meant lose him to heartbreak." Norma explained. "I know deep down he still cares about all of you. That's one of the reasons why he hasn't visited, he's in denial about how much he's been hurting you. And once the last tree is cut down...that's when he'll have to face the truth and I know it'll break his heart. I have to think of some way to stop him while there are still trees here. If we can save the last few trees then there's a chance of returning the forest."

"Not much of a chance, the area is too polluted." Lorax admitted.

"Still, there has to be a way..."

"Well, there might be." Lorax pulled out a seed. "I salvaged this from one of the trees, once this area isn't polluted anymore then you and Beanpole should plant this. Even one tree can bring back a whole forest."

Norma accepted the seed. When she got back she thought for quite a while but couldn't think of any way to open Once-ler's eyes. So she decided to go ask her parents for advice.

"Once?" She said during dinner. "I was thinking of leaving tomorrow to visit my parents. It's been a long time since I've seen them and I really miss them."

"Of course." Once-ler smiled. "I understand. I wish I could come with you but I don't think mom would let me... How long do you think you'll be gone?"

"About a week or two, I don't know if I could stay longer than that without missing you too much." Norma grinned.

"Same here. Let's make the most of tonight, I'll let mom handle the rest of business."

Once-ler went to his and Norma's bedroom the same time as Norma for the first time in months. Isabella was left in charge of the factory. Once-ler played his guitar for Norma, something else he hadn't done in months, and they had fun just hanging out and being together. They also made the most of their sleep, since it would be a while before they'd be together again.

The next morning, Norma packed up her things and left. Once-ler took off his glasses and kept them off. He wanted to make sure that he could spot Norma's car when she came back.

Norma soon entered her parents' house. Her mom greeted her first.

"Oh Norma, you and Once-ler haven't fought or anything have you?" She asked worriedly, seeing Norma's luggage.

"Nothing of the sort, I just missed you guys a lot so I decided to visit you for a week or two." Norma smiled. "Plus I need your advice."

So Norma explained the problem, but her parents didn't have any ideas either. None of them got a single idea over the next few days.

Finally a little over a week passed. Norma had been feeling weird lately, including a bit ill, so she went to see a doctor. The next day she got the results: she was pregnant. She was very happy, and so were her parents.

"I have to leave early, I have to tell Once-ler." Norma said to them that evening.

"Of course, you must tell him." Norma's dad smiled.


	7. Heartbreak and Hope

So Norma packed up and drove back to the factory. That's when she got a huge shock: it was too late. Every last tree was gone. She drove faster, hoping that she could get to Once-ler before his heart completely broke. She found him sitting on the bottom of the steps that led to his office.

"Once?" She said.

Once-ler, who had been crying miserably, looked up and brightened upon seeing Norma.

"Norma!" He went over to her and hugged her. "Oh Norma I'm so sorry, I've made a huge mistake. You were right all along, Lorax's opinion did mean more than mom's opinion. I should've realized sooner that you were my real family."

"I still am." Norma hugged him back.

"You mean...but I've lost everything. Ubb, Grizelda, mom, Brett and Chet all left. And the animals and Lorax left too, even Melvin. Even Melvin..." He started to cry again.

"Hey, for better or worse right? I'm not leaving you no matter what."

"But you don't deserve to be with me, you deserve better." He sobbed.

"I deserve to be with the one I love and that one is you. Besides, we can start anew." Norma pulled out the seed Lorax gave her over a week ago. "Lorax gave this to me not long before I left. Once this area is less polluted you can plant it. Lorax said that even one tree can bring back a forest."

"I can't." Once-ler hung his head. "I destroyed everything, there is no way that I can trust myself with this seed."

"Very well, the three of us will plant and raise it together." Norma smiled.

"Yeah that could work." Once-ler started to feel a little better. "We could bring the forest back...bring the animals and even Lorax back..." He now looked determined. "Right! We'll make things right again, the three of-" He then stopped and froze. "The three of us? Wait...did you convince one of the animals or Lorax to come back?" He asked hopefully.

"I wish." Norma was still smiling.

"Then what did you mean by the three of us? There are only two of us."

"Not for long...I'm pregnant."

Once-ler froze again.

"You're...you mean...?" He couldn't believe it.

Norma nodded, still smiling. Grinning even.

"You're going to be a father." She confirmed.

Once-ler didn't know whether to cry or cheer. So he shed some tears and hugged Norma while laughing.

"I'm going to be a father." He sobbed happily. "We're going to have a child."

"That's right, your real family is getting bigger." Norma hugged him back.

Once-ler then grew solemn and stepped back.

"Norma, I have to stay here. It's my fault everything was destroyed. Since the animals had to suffer the pollution it's only fair that I should suffer the pollution as well." He said.

"I understand, I can handle the pollution as long as I'm with you." Norma nodded.

"No Norma...you have to leave." Once-ler hung his head. "You have to escape the pollution. You don't deserve to suffer, especially since you already had to put up with the pollution the past few years"

"You think being away from you isn't suffering?" Norma protested. "I love you Once, I love you more than my own life. I'm not leaving you, I can't."

"Please Norma, if not for me then leave for our child." Once-ler pleaded. "Even you have to admit that we can't let our child suffer all this pollution."

Norma fell silent and hung her head.

"You got me there." She sighed. "But what about you? If we do it this way then...then you'll never get to see your child. And our child will never know you."

"It's better that way. What child would want me for a father?" Once-ler started to shed some tears again. "What child would want a forest destroyer for a father? I just couldn't let our child live with that shame, plus it could ruin his or her social life. Once our child starts asking about me just tell him or her that I'm dead. I am in a way anyway...at least I feel dead inside."

Norma was close to crying as well.

"But what about the seed?" She handed it to him.

"I still can't plant it, I'll only destroy it like I've destroyed everything else." Once-ler, even so, accepted the seed. "But maybe someday someone will come along who truly cares about trees. Once that person comes along send him or her to me. I'll tell that person my story and give the seed to him or her to plant. That way I can at least be part of returning the forest without risk of hurting anything."

"But what if the wrong person comes?" Norma asked.

"I trust your judgement, but just in case we'd better come up with a code." Once-ler knew she had a point.

"How about the right person brings you certain items? One can be my pet snail." Norma pointed to her car, where her snail was in a tank. "He's a special species that can live a long time, even long enough to be a great-grandfather."

"That works, anyone else will end up bringing the wrong snail. However I know what your snail looks like and so can make sure that it's the right one. But we should pick at least two other items just to make sure."

They thought for a moment. Then Norma smiled.

"How about fifteen cents?" She suggested.

"Common thing to bring." Once-ler shrugged. "What gave you that idea?"

"Because we married on the fifth day of the first month." She blushed a little.

Once-ler looked touched.

"Very well then...one more item though." Once-ler went back to thinking. "How about a nail?"

"A nail? What for?"

"It rhymes with snail." Once-ler grinned.

Norma smirked back.

"Very well, fifteen cents, a nail, and the shell of a great-grandfather snail - just in case my pet snail dies by the time I find the right person." Norma agreed.

"Good idea." Once-ler nodded. "You'd better go now...before this gets any harder."

"Right." Norma sighed sadly. "Oh, one moment."

She went back to the car, opened the trunk, searched through a suitcase, and brought out something long and pink.

"A thneed?" Once-ler was confused.

"The first one I ever bought." Norma wrapped it around Once-ler's neck. "Just a way to keep me near you, and also a reminder that the thneed was never a bad idea. Just chopping down the trees was a bad idea. I'll keep the one you made specially for me for our first anniversary to keep you near me."

Her anniversary thneed was a yellow thneed with red and orange flowers on it.

"Thank you." Once-ler nearly whispered, touched. "Goodbye." He said sadly.

"Not goodbye, just see you later." Norma said sadly. "Much later. I know we'll see each other again somehow."

Once-ler just shed some more tears and hung his head. Norma started to walk away, but then decided to say a longer goodbye. Or rather, sing a longer goodbye:

In a perfect world  
One we used to know  
We never needed to face the world alone

They can have their world  
We still have our own  
I may not be brave or strong or smart  
But somewhere in my secret heart

I know  
Love will find a way  
Anywhere I go  
I'm home  
If you are there beside me

Like dark turning into day  
Somehow we'll come through  
Now that I've found you  
Love will find a way

Once-ler, touched, decided to join in:

I'm not afraid  
For now I realize  
Love is never wrong  
And so it never dies

There's a perfect world  
Shining in your eyes

Once-ler and Norma now sang together:

And if only they could feel it too  
The happiness I feel with you

They'd know  
Love will find a way  
Anywhere we go  
We're home  
If we are there together

Like dark turning into day  
Somehow we'll come through  
Now that I've found you  
Love will find a way

I know  
Love will find a way  
Anywhere I go  
I'm home  
If we are there together

Like dark turning into day  
Somehow we'll come through  
Now that I've found you  
Love will find a way

I know love will find a way  
I know, love will find a way

They drew closer to each other as they sang, and then they kissed. They kissed for a long time. Finally they couldn't prolong it any longer, Norma had to leave. First she told him the expected date of their child's birth, then she left. Once-ler watched her until her car was out of sight.


	8. Family and Enemy

Back in present times, Sally, Ted, and Audrey were in tears, though Ted was trying hard to hide it. He did smile though.

"I still care about you." He said.

Once-ler looked at him with surprise.

"You care about me? After what I did?" He asked.

"It wasn't your fault...I know I said it was after I heard your story but I was wrong." Ted said a bit ashamed. "I was just shocked by what happened...still, it was wrong of me. After all it was really your mom's fault."

Once-ler smiled at Ted, touched, and then turned to Sally. To his surprise she was smiling at him.

"I'm so glad to finally meet you." She said.

"But I thought you'd be ashamed of me." Once-ler stared.

"Well Ted is right, what happened to the forest was really your mom's fault." Sally shrugged. "Besides, I had been wanting a father for so long that I ended up only caring about one thing: that he love me and mom no matter what. You fit that description perfectly."

Once-ler, again, was touched. Ted then went over to Once-ler and hugged him. Sally joined in the hug.

"Your real family really did get bigger." Grammy Norma smiled.

Once-ler was too full of emotions to say anything. He just hugged Ted and Sally back. Ted then frowned with confusion and pulled away.

"Wait a minute, if you were expecting someone to come and ask about the trees then what's with that security system of yours?" He asked. "The trick doorbell and such?"

"Oh that...well you weren't the first one to visit me since Norma left." Once-ler explained.

"Then who was?" Audrey asked.

"Aloysius O'Hare."

Everyone else looked at him with shock. Once-ler explained:

_It turns out after Norma left Once-ler called the town and arranged for a few things. First of all he had the factory torn down. He only kept his bedroom furniture, a table and some chairs, and some personal items, but sold pretty much everything else. He also hired some construction workers to build his Lurkhim out of scraps from the torn-down factory. He then spent most of his money to buy a century's supply of canned food and batteries for his clock. After he was settled in his new Lurkhim he burnt his money, clothes, and photos except for certain ones: his old gray clothing (which Norma had saved), his wedding outfit (which he was wearing right now), and photos of Norma and Brett and Chet._

_Brett and Chet, it turns out, didn't want to leave after the last tree had been chopped down._

"_Once, we're really sorry." Brett said sympathetically._

"_It's not your fault." Once-ler said sadly. "It's mine."_

"_We don't want to leave you." Chet sniffled._

"_It's best that you do." Once-ler shrugged. "I won't be staying here much longer anyway, and it wouldn't be fair to ask the both of you to suffer the pollution any longer."_

"_Where will you be going?" Brett asked._

"_A place I deserve to go to." Once-ler shed a tear. "Neither of you can come with me either, you don't deserve to go there."_

"_You mean you'll turn yourself in to the police?" Chet guessed._

"_No-"_

"_Brett! Chet! Get down here right now!" Isabella yelled._

"_You'd better go, I'll see you guys off." Once-ler shrugged._

_As Once-ler's so-called family left he saw that Brett and Chet still looked regretful about leaving...and then looked shocked as Brett was dubbed Isabella's favorite child._

"Wait." Ted interrupted. "What were you talking about? Where were you planning to go?"

Once-ler cringed.

"It was a place that I'd never be able to leave...I only changed my mind about going there once Norma gave me the seed and a reason to stay and try to fix my mistake. I'll probably go there pretty soon anyway though...maybe within another five years."

Everyone still looked at him with confusion.

"But since the trees are coming back then there's no reason for you to leave." Audrey pointed out.

"Oh I wouldn't be leaving of my own choice this time. It'll just happen, like it happens to everyone when they get to be around my age." Once-ler looked away.

Everyone now got what he was talking about and paled. Grammy Norma put a hand to her mouth.

"You...that place, you're talking about...?" Ted awkwardly pointed to the ground.

Once-ler nodded.

"But you don't deserve to go there." Grammy Norma was very upset. "You never did and I doubt you will once...you know."

"Wait a minute...you were actually going to...?" Sally was now upset.

"Kill myself." Once-ler nodded again. "I didn't want to tell Brett and Chet outright, I knew they'd be very upset. But until Norma came back I didn't have much of a reason to stay alive. I felt deserving of death back then anyway."

No one knew what to say after that. Then Ted decided to break the awkward silence by getting back to his original question:

"Uh, about your security system...?"

"Oh right." Once-ler went back to the story.

_The day after Once-ler was settled in he went outside and started to apologize:_

"_I'm sorry trees." He said to the stumps. "I'm sorry Barb-a-loots. I'm sorry Swomee-Swans." He now neared the destroyed river. "I'm sorry Humming Fish. I'm sorry Lorax..." He broke down. "I'm so sorry." He sobbed._

_He spent every day that way. He would eat breakfast, pray for someone who cares about trees to come, go outside and apologize to the trees and animals and Lorax, have dinner, go to bed. Not much else. But one day there was a change._

"_Hello." A short young man with braces said to Once-ler._

"_Who are you?" Once-ler had just come back from his usual apologizing and was surprised to receive a visitor; for a moment he hoped that this man had come for the seed._

"_My name is Aloysius O'Hare." The man introduced himself. "You are The Once-ler right?"_

"_That's me." Once-ler sighed. "What do you want?"_

"_Well, I know you lost your business and everything else when you ran out of materials for your thneeds." O'Hare said. "So I have a proposition to make. I have discovered away to create air, but in order to build a factory that can produce enough air for a town I'll need money. As I recall you sold a lot of thneeds, so you probably have plenty of money. Invest in my factory and I'll make you wealthy and famous again. You can even share credit."_

_Once-ler frowned at him._

"_No thank you." He said sternly before storming inside his Lurkhim._

"_Think it over!" O'Hare called to him. "I'll be back!"_

_Sure enough the next day after Once-ler finished his apologies O'Hare came back._

"_Look, I already told you no thank you." Once-ler frowned._

"_What's holding you back?" O'Hare shrugged, confused. "Come on, you have nothing to lose just a lot to gain. You can get fame, fortune, even your family back. You can be happy again."_

_That did it. For one thing Once-ler didn't even want any of that back. Not even his family...well maybe Brett, Chet, Norma and their child but not while there was still pollution. And right now the only thing that would make him happy again would be for the trees and animals and Lorax to return._

"_See here! Anyone who cares more about himself and money than anything else doesn't deserve happiness!" Once-ler snapped. "I lost everything because of my greed and selfishness and I'll never go down that path again! I'd rather continue suffering out here than become rich and famous again! Now leave me alone!"_

_Once-ler took his boot off his foot and hit O'Hare with it. He then went back inside and slammed the door. O'Hare scowled, picked himself up, dusted himself off, and left. Once-ler fell to his knees by the door and cried._

"_I was that." He sobbed. "I was a monster."_

_To prevent O'Hare from easily reaching him again Once-ler decided to use some leftover scraps to build a security system and warning signs. They signs didn't stop O'Hare, but Once-ler used the security system on him and it drove him away. Now paranoid of becoming a monster again, Once-ler decided to stay inside and just do his apologies at the side of his bed._

_He also marked his child's expected birth date on his old calendar, or at least the week surrounding it. Once that week came..._

"_So you're finally here son, or daughter." Once-ler said to himself. "I wish I could be there, but it's better that you never know me. Even so I love you so much. I always will."_

_And so every year during that week Once-ler spiritually spoke to his child, telling him or her that he loves him or her and always will._

_Decades passed, and finally Ted arrived. Once-ler was scared that Ted was a messenger from O'Hare, who had probably waited for Once-ler to snap from the isolation before trying again (actually O'Hare had given up entirely, especially after he got the money from somewhere else). But then Ted showed him the cents, nail, and snail and Once-ler realized that it was actually Norma who sent him._

_After that he changed his schedule. He stopped doing his apologies and instead spent most of his free time trying to figure out how to tell Ted the rest of the story without mentioning Norma (trees after all had to remain the main point). He also started taking care of the snail out of respect and love for Norma._


	9. Meeting Lorax

"Wait, you 'spoke' to me every year around my birthday?" Sally looked surprised.

"Yeah. Even though I couldn't be there I still tried to send my love to you." Once-ler explained.

"I think you succeeded...I heard you." Sally said.

Everyone looked at her stunned.

"You-you did?" Once-ler couldn't believe it.

"I'm sure it was you...either way every year around my birthday, sometimes on my birthday, I would hear a voice in my head telling me that it loves me. I didn't know what it was back then. I first wondered if it was my dad's ghost but then later wondered if I was just imagining the voice out of wanting a father so badly. Either way I never told anyone, not even mom. I didn't want anyone to think I was crazy."

"But how could you have heard me? I always said it quietly and we were miles apart." Once-ler asked, confused.

"Maybe your love for your daughter was so strong that you spoke through your heart and she heard you through her heart." Audrey guessed.

Since no one else could think of an alternate explanation, they decided to agree with Audrey.

"Oh, I just remembered." Once-ler said. "There's someone I'd like you to meet. Lorax? You around Mustache?"

"Yeah I'm here." Lorax came out from behind the Lurkhim. "I saw Norma coming with Ted and the others and wanted to give you a moment with her first."

Sally looked at Lorax with surprise and Ted and Audrey looked at him with awe.

"Hello Lorax." Grammy Norma smiled.

"Hey Chrystanth." Lorax smiled. "Man I've missed you."

"I've missed you too."

"I've gotta admire your loyalty and love to Beanpole." Lorax then smiled approvingly. "I'm glad you gave him a reason to live too."

"Not even half as glad as I am." Grammy Norma said solemnly.

"So you're the kid who brought the trees back." Lorax turned to Ted. "Thank you."

"Aw it was nothing...I mean I wouldn't have even known about trees if Audrey hadn't introduced them to me." Ted rubbed the back of his head humbly.

"Are you sure he's your grandson Beanpole? He seems too humble to be related to you." Lorax smirked. "Then again he probably takes more after his grandmother."

Once-ler glared at him. Grammy Norma and Ted chuckled.

"Even so," Lorax turned back to Ted. "The animals and I are in your debt."

"Forget it, there's even no need for thanks." Ted waved a hand dismissively. "I mean I speak for the trees too. And it's a huge honor to meet you, I've wanted to meet you ever since I first got to know you through grandpa's story."

"I've been wanting to meet the other Speaker of the Trees as well." Audrey smiled. "It's an honor."

Lorax just smiled at them proudly. He then turned to Once-ler.

"Say, interesting thing about those apologies of yours Beanpole: the animals and I heard you." He said.

Once-ler looked happy to hear that.

"Really?" He said, sounding a bit emotional.

"Yeah, ever since you first started doing them." Lorax nodded. "We were a bit surprised to hear it at first, but soon realized that you felt so bad that you were apologizing with your very soul. Then when your apologies stopped we became scared that you had died...at least until we heard that the forest was slowly coming back. That was when we knew that you had found a way to restore the trees to the valley."

"How did you hear about the trees coming back?" Sally asked.

"Mother Nature herself." Lorax smiled. "She's a real deity, but only nature guardians like myself can hear her."

Once-ler, his real family, and Audrey looked surprised to hear that. After they got over it they spent pretty much the rest of the day either catching up with or getting to know Once-ler and Lorax.


	10. Meeting the Animals

About two days later Audrey and Ted and his family visited Once-ler and Lorax again. Now that they knew who he really was Ted and Sally wanted to see him more often. Plus Grammy Norma had decided to move in with Once-ler, after all they were still married and had been separated for too long already. So, Sally was driving Grammy Norma over with her stuff in a smaller car she had rented. She wasn't using her huge van since the road between town and the Lurkhim was kinda narrow. Ted and Audrey however had taken Ted's scooter again. They preferred feeling the wind as they traveled.

"Back so soon?" Lorax chuckled after they all parked.

"Grammy wanted to move back in with Grampy." Ted explained, taking his helmet off. "We're helping her."

Lorax nodded understandingly. Once-ler smiled, especially as Grammy Norma got out of the car.

"Why don't you all stay? Lorax says that the animals are supposed to arrive today." He said.

"I'd love too!" Audrey smiled.

"Sure, I want to meet Melvin and Pipsqueak." Ted agreed.

After helping Grammy Norma bring her things into the Lurkhim they all relaxed outside and waited for the animals to show up. It didn't take too long, soon some Swomee-Swans started flying towards the Lurkhim. They landed amongst the saplings, singing.

"Wow, their music is beautiful." Audrey smiled.

"Hm, still prefer disco but their singing isn't half-bad." Sally shrugged.

"What's disco?" Lorax asked.

"You don't want to know." Ted groaned.

Sally frowned and Grammy Norma chuckled.

Despite real trees coming back Sally had kept their fake tree just for the disco setting. Much to Ted's chagrin and embarrassment.

Eventually the Barb-a-loots and Humming Fish showed up as well. An old Barb-a-loot with a light patch on his chest slowly approached Once-ler.

"Pipsqueak?" Once-ler said hopefully.

The Barb-a-loot chirped happily. Once-ler knelt down and hugged him.

"I'm so sorry Pipsqueak, I never meant to hurt you." He said; he then took a marshmallow out of his pocket. "Last time I offered you one you turned me down...I guess you were too hurt to accept it and I don't blame you. However it wasn't a peace offering, it was to show that I still cared about you. And I still care about you even after all these years."

Pipsqueak smiled and accepted the marshmallow. He then slowly ate it, obviously wanting to savor it.

Then a very old mule showed up.

"Melvin?" Once-ler gasped.

Melvin whinnied slightly. Once-ler went over to him and hugged him.

"I'm so sorry Melvin. I've missed you so much but you had every right to leave." Once-ler sobbed a little. "And I'm really glad that you came back, I thought I'd never see you again. Oh...when Lorax came back he told me that you have a surprise for me. What is it?"

Melvin then turned his head and whinnied again. A smaller mule showed up. Everyone, except for Lorax and the other animals, stared.

"Is...is this your son?" Once-ler guessed (he already saw what gender the young mule was).

Melvin nodded.

"What happened to...?" Once-ler couldn't finish.

Melvin just looked sad. Once-ler hugged him again.

"I'm really sorry." He said sympathetically.

Melvin just nuzzled Once-ler. The younger mule then stared at Once-ler for a moment before nuzzling him too.

"Hello Melvin." Grammy Norma said, going over to him.

Melvin smiled at Grammy Norma and nuzzled her.

"Yeah, you're not the only one who came back." Once-ler smiled. "And you're not the only one with a surprise either." He gestured to Sally and Ted. "Everyone, meet my daughter Sally and grandson Ted. Ted in fact was the one who brought the forest back."

"Oh I didn't do it alone." Ted shrugged humbly. "I mean Audrey was the one who first told me about trees, and I couldn't have gotten a chance to plant the seed without Grammy and mom's help. Oh an Once-ler's too of course, since he had the seed in the first place."

Pipsqueak and the other animals then went over to Ted and Audrey and greeted them pleasantly. Once-ler and the others stared at this, especially since the Barb-a-loots hugged Ted and Audrey and the Swomee-Swans perched on Ted and Audrey's shoulders and heads.

"Hey take it easy!" Ted laughed. "Come on I'm not that strong, you're gonna-"

Too late, Ted lost his balance and fell over. But he just continued laughing as the Barb-a-loots and Humming Fish swarmed him and the Swomee-Swans nuzzled him. Audrey took a tip from this and knelt down so that she wouldn't fall over. She was laughing too.

"Hey come on, cut it out." Ted laughed.

"You all are very grateful aren't you?" Audrey smiled.

"Okay okay! Come on, back up, give them some air." Lorax ordered.

The animals regretfully backed away, allowing Ted and Audrey to stand up. They were still laughing.

"Wow, and I thought the town was grateful." Audrey joked.

Ted winced a little but nodded in agreement.

"You okay kid?" Lorax asked, noticing his wince.

"Yeah, it's just that the town has been giving me more attention than I wanted since I planted the seed." Ted explained. "It's kinda overwhelming."

Melvin and his son then went over to Ted and Audrey and nuzzled them as well. Once-ler and Grammy Norma stared since Melvin hardly warmed up to anyone. He wasn't even that friendly to Once-ler, at least not all the time. Lorax on the other hand looked as if he was starting to realize something.

Months passed, and it was now around half a year later. Melvin had already died about three months ago, and had been buried near the Lurkhim. Once-ler missed Melvin a lot but continued to take care of his mule's son, who he had named Melvin Jr. Once-ler and Melvin Jr had become close friends.


	11. The Past Catches Up To Once-ler

One morning Grammy Norma decided to go shopping (they had bought an old wagon a while back for Melvin Jr to pull). Once-ler decided to water some saplings.

A little over two hours later Grammy Norma returned with Ted, Audrey, and Sally. They went inside the Lurkhim only to find it empty.

"I guess Grampy isn't done watering the saplings." Ted guessed. "We'd better look for him."

They all went back outside.

"Hello Lorax." Sally said.

"Hey Sunflower, Beansprout." Lorax looked up from his card game; he then saw Grammy Norma and Audrey. "Oh, hi Chrysanth, hi Truffula Hair."

Ted, Grammy Norma, and Audrey said their hellos.

"Have you seen Once anywhere?" Audrey asked.

"No, been too into my card game." Lorax shrugged. "Why?"

"He hasn't returned from watering the saplings and we wanted to see him." Ted explained.

"Don't worry, he just probably got a bit tired and decided to take a nap out there." Lorax shrugged. "He used to do that in his youth."

Pipsqueak suddenly ran up to them.

"Guys, papa is in really bad shape." He sniffled.

Lorax, Ted, and Audrey looked shocked and even worried.

"Follow me." Pipsqueak ran off.

Everyone followed him and found Once-ler lying still on the ground. He was coughing very hard.

"Beanpole?" Lorax went over to him first.

Ted and Audrey went to Once-ler's left while Sally and Grammy Norma went closer to Once-ler's right.

"Hi Mustache." Once-ler said weakly. "Hello family."

"Once? What's wrong?" Grammy Norma asked worriedly.

"The pollution finally caught up with me." Once-ler wheezed. "I'm dying."

He then hacked a bit.

Ted burst into tears and started crying brokenheartedly on Once-ler. Audrey rubbed Ted's back sympathetically.

"It's not fair." Ted sobbed. "You don't deserve this, you deserve a second chance. You can't die, especially not this way. Please don't go, please."

"Daddy." Sally hugged Once-ler, also shedding tears.

Grammy Norma didn't say anything, she just kissed Once-ler and watched him sadly. She knew that she couldn't live long without Once-ler. Pipsqueak just held Once-ler's hand.

"You punished yourself too long Beanpole." Lorax said sadly.

Once-ler felt himself losing consciousness. His heart and breathing slowed. Soon he only saw black.

"_Ted is right." A female voice said._

"_Who is that?" Once-ler asked in his mind._

"_I'm Mother Nature." The female voice said._

_Once-ler was too stunned to speak._

"_Anyway Ted is right, you do deserve a second chance at life. A real life, with a real family." Mother Nature said. "And I'm going to give you that chance, same with Norma."_

"_What-?" Once-ler started to ask but was cut off by feeling warm and light all of a sudden._

At the same time, Once-ler's body glowed. Grammy Norma's body did too. Ted stopped crying and stared with shock, same with Sally, Audrey, Lorax, and Pipsqueak. When the glowing stopped everyone except for Lorax, Norma and Once-ler dropped their mouths open, because Norma and Once-ler were young again! As for Lorax he just beamed at the scene.

"What happened?" Norma asked.

"Mother Nature gave you two a second chance." Lorax explained.

Startled, Norma looked at her hands and body and saw that she was taller and younger again! She then looked at Once-ler and saw that he was younger again too! Once-ler then groaned and opened his eyes.

"What...what did Mother Nature do?" He asked weakly.

"Just take a look for yourself." Lorax smiled.

Once-ler looked at Lorax with confusion, and then looked at his body. He didn't get it at first, until he saw that his hands were younger looking. Shocked, he then turned to his family and saw younger Norma there.

"N-Norma?" He couldn't believe it. "Can this be real?"

"It is real, we're both young again." Norma grinned with joy.

Once-ler laughed with joy and hugged her. She returned the hug. Ted and Sally then joined in the hug. Audrey just watched with happiness, having decided to let the hug be a family hug at the moment.

"Papa!" Pipsqueak said happily.

Startled, Once-ler and Norma turned towards Pipsqueak and stared at him.

"You can understand me?" Pipsqueak was surprised.

"I can..." Once-ler was shocked again. "But wait, if I can then..."

Once-ler froze for a moment. He realized that Mother Nature had also given him the ability to understand animals and trees, an ability that she had given to Ted and Audrey months ago.

"Mother Nature forgives me." Once-ler almost whispered with joy. "She forgives me."

He then smiled peacefully. Finally he had forgiven himself.


	12. Family Lost and Found

The next month Ted paid a visit to the valley again, this time with a book. However instead of seeing his now-young grandparents he just went out amongst the saplings, sat on the grass, held the book to his chest, and silently started crying. Pipsqueak saw this and went over to Once-ler, Norma, and Lorax, who were sitting on the new outside chairs Once-ler and Norma had bought.

"I saw Ted sitting out there crying, is he okay?" He asked, concerned.

"Oh..." Norma now looked sad. "That's right, it's that time of year again."

Once-ler, Lorax, and Pipsqueak looked at her with confusion.

"He's upset because something happened to his dad seven years ago this very day." Norma explained; she then turned to Once-ler. "I think you'd better go talk to him about it, it might make him feel better."

"Okay." Once-ler agreed, wanting to find out more anyway.

He got up and walked over to Ted.

"Hey Ted." He said gently.

"Hi Grampy." Ted sobbed.

Once-ler sat down next to Ted.

"Norma told me that you're upset because of your dad." He said.

"Yeah, seven years ago this day he...he died." Ted sobbed.

Once-ler looked at him sympathetically, and then hugged him with one arm.

"Would you like to tell me what happened to him?" He asked.

"Well, I never told anyone the story before. Mom, Grammy, and Audrey already know the story anyway." Ted thought it over. "Okay, it'll feel good to get it off my chest."

So Ted started with mentioning his parents being in high school. It turns out his dad was in love with his mom ever since then. They ended up together obviously but before proposing Mr. Wiggins wanted to get a job so that he could support them. He had a little trouble, but finally managed to get a job in O'Hare's factory making the bottles for the air. Mr. Wiggins and Sally then married and had Ted.

"He was a wonderful father." Ted continued. "No matter how tired he was he would always spend time with me after work. Either we played or if he was really tired he would read to me. But then...when I was six..." He started to sob again. "I was at school at the time, mom got the call first and picked me up. It turns out the chemicals used in making the bottles had given him cancer, especially in the lungs, and he was in the hospital. Mom and I stayed with him only for a few hours because...because he died that very same day. I begged him not to go but he couldn't help it. Mom and I were both so devastated that we stopped being as social. We even got rid of our bottled air machine. Audrey and her parents did too out of respect, and we were the only families to do so."

"I'm so sorry Ted." Once-ler was in tears as well.

"It wasn't your fault, if O'Hare had used safer materials it wouldn't have happened." Ted shook his head.

"So, you and Audrey have been friends for a long time huh?" Once-ler decided to change the subject a little.

"Yeah, we were always neighbors and so knew each other our whole lives." Ted smiled slightly. "Grammy didn't know her at first, she lived in the senior center before dad died. And even after he died she didn't go out that much, she mostly kept mom company. Especially when I went out to play with Audrey. Audrey was very sympathetic too, and always comforted me if I ever cried while we were playing. But nothing could comfort me. I eventually managed to at least continue my life, knowing that dad would want me too, but I've never recovered. I even stopped singing."

"You used to sing?" Once-ler smiled a little.

"Yeah, Audrey too." Ted nodded. "But after dad died I pretty much lost my singing voice. Audrey stopped singing out of respect. Even though things have gotten better I still haven't found a reason to sing. When the rest of the town sang Let It Grow Audrey and I were the only ones who didn't sing."

"Maybe someday you'll find your singing voice again." Once-ler said. "I'd love to hear you sing."

Ted just clutched his book tighter and went back to crying.

"Your dad used to read you that book?" Once-ler guessed.

Ted nodded.

"I-it was the last one he read to me before he died." He sobbed. "He wasn't able to finish it though...there was just one chapter left."

Once-ler noticed that there was a bookmark in the book.

"And you never read that chapter did you?" Once-ler realized.

"No...I couldn't. It was my first time hearing the story anyway...it was one of his favorites when he was a kid and he wanted to share it with me." Ted explained. "I never let anyone else read the chapter to me either. I-I just can't let go of dad."

"Ted, remember when I was still feeling guilty about what happened to the valley and you told me to let go of the past and move on?"

"That was different."

"It's not that different. Besides, you were lucky to know your dad as long as you did." Once-ler hung his head. "I never knew my father."

Ted now looked up at him shocked.

"My father left mom before I was born." Once-ler explained. "I'm not sure when he left, but if he left not long before I was born then he was avoiding me as well as mom. If he left before mom found out that she was having me then he doesn't know I exist. Because of that I don't know if he ever loved me or will ever love me. At least your dad loved you, and still loves you. As long as he loves you and you love him he'll always be in your heart."

Once-ler put a hand over Ted's heart as he finished. Ted thought about that, and realized that Once-ler had made some good points. He knew that Once-ler was right about his dad still being in his heart, which meant he never really lost his dad at all. And now he has a Grampy, a Grampy who will be with him for many decades. Ted looked up, smiled, and hugged Once-ler.

"Thank you." He said.

Once-ler hugged him back and saw the cover of the book Ted had brought.

"I don't believe it...that's one of my favorite stories too." Once-ler stared.

Ted broke away and looked at the book.

"Really?" He was surprised too.

"Yeah, I haven't read it in decades." Once-ler nodded. "But it's okay, I read it so many times during my childhood that I memorized it."

Ted thought for a moment.

"Then...would you like to read the last chapter to me?" Ted asked shyly.

Once-ler stared at him with disbelief.

"Really?" He double-checked.

"I've decided to move on...besides, I now have a Grampy to look up to...in more ways than one." Ted smiled.

Once-ler smiled emotionally, realizing that he's become as dear and important to Ted as Mr. Wiggins. He took the book and opened it to the beginning of the chapter. Then Ted snuggled against him as he started to read...


	13. This Is The Place Reprise

It was just a few days later. Once-ler had been happier than ever before and so decided to get back to something he hadn't done in years: sing. Ted, Sally, and Audrey were visiting him and Norma when he came out with his guitar and began playing. Then he started to sing:

This is it! This is the place!  
The place that I now call my home  
I wanna hold it all in one big embrace  
For from this valley I will never roam

Na, na, na na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na  
Now you!

ANIMALS:  
Na, na, na na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na

ONCE-LER:  
Humming Fish, I love your hums  
I just know we'll always be chums  
This pond is perfect! There's no doubt  
And your music is a knockout!

ALL:  
Na, na, na na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na  
Na, na, na na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na

NORMA:  
Swomee-Swans, you fly so high  
Everywhere I look, you fill the sky  
I love your graceful neck, and your noble breast  
But it is your music that's always the best

ALL:  
Na, na, na na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na  
Na, na, na na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na

SALLY:  
Hey there, Barb-a-loots!  
You look so cute in your Barb-a-loot suits  
Your fur's so soft, it's a real beut  
How about after the song we have some Truffula fruits?

Then to everyone else's surprise:

TED:  
Life for me was poorly rated  
The world was fake and the factory I hated  
But now thanks to that one seed  
We all have everything we could ever need

Everyone stared at Ted happily, realizing that he had finally healed completely. Ted, who had surprised himself with his singing, just continued smiling. Audrey smiled at him, overjoyed, and joined in:

I love it! These Truffula trees  
All my life I've wished for trees, such trees as these  
The touch of their tufts is softer than silk  
And they have the sweet smell of butterfly milk

ONCE-LER:  
Oh everybody now!

ALL, EVEN TED AND AUDREY:  
Na, na, na na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na  
Na, na, na na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na  
Na na na na, na na, na na na

Yup, everything was a lot better for Once-ler and his family.


	14. Anniversary

Some more time passed and it was now the first anniversary of the day Ted had planted the seed. The day had been called Truffula Day, and was used to celebrate Truffulas and nature in general. The town took a trip to the valley with watering cans to water the trees. Well not all of the town, Ted, Audrey, and Sally had decided to just visit the first tree and then stay home. Ted and Audrey had something planned for Once-ler, Norma, and Lorax and wanted to work on it.

This was the first time the whole town was visiting the valley at once, so the animals were overwhelmed. The animals first hid inside and behind the Lurkhim, but then a few kids found the ones hiding behind the Lurkhim. The kids gently petted the Barb-a-loots and invited them to play, same with the Humming Fish and Swomee-Swans. Realizing that the humans meant no harm, the animals got over their fear and re-entered the valley. Once-ler, Norma, and Lorax went outside as well. Lorax wanted to make sure that none of the humans would harm anything and Once-ler and Norma wanted to help. The town already knew about them being young again due to them having visited the town after their youth was restored.

As for Lorax, well Ted had told the town about him to prevent him from being forgotten again. Lorax actually had visited the town before, mostly to check on the first tree and to see Audrey, Ted, and Sally, so other people had met him. But not the whole town, normally he was cautious of humans. So if a human greeted him he politely answered back, but he never went straight to a human he didn't know just for a pleasant chat.

After the day was over Once-ler and Norma went to bed very tired. Lorax slept outside with the other animals...except for Pipsqueak, he had decided to sleep inside the Lurkhim that night. That was because Ted and Audrey were going to need his help...

The next day, Once-ler and Norma went downstairs to have breakfast and got a big shock: on the table were two scarves and a orange cake with a yellow icing mustache on it! Once-ler and Norma went closer and found tags: the gray striped scarf with the seed emblem was for Once-ler, the purple and lavender scarf with the yellow Truffula was for Norma, and the cake was for Lorax. Once-ler went over to the front door and opened it.

"Hey Mustache! Come inside a sec!" Once-ler called out.

Lorax went over to Once-ler.

"What is it Beanpole?" He asked.

"Someone left us gifts." Once-ler explained, gesturing to the table.

Lorax stared at the scarves and cake.

"The scarves are for me and Norma and the cake is for you." Once-ler added.

"For me?" Lorax was stunned.

He went over to the table, hopped on a chair, and looked at the tag in front of the cake. It only had the word Lorax on it.

"No 'from' label?" Lorax was even more stunned.

"I guess whoever made these didn't want recognition." Norma smiled. "They were just doing it out of kindness."

"A 'from' label would've been redundant anyway." Once-ler smiled. "It's pretty obvious who left us these. After all who had been spending the last few months learning how to knit?"

"Ted and Audrey." Norma smiled.

Lorax just looked even more stunned, and then a bit emotional.

"What's wrong Mustache?" Once-ler asked.

"Nothing, it's just...no one has ever done anything like this for me before." Lorax smiled. "All the past offerings...they were to get something out of me. Mostly good plant growth. But this...all Ted and Audrey want is for me to have something tasty to enjoy. They don't even want a thank you. Well even if they don't want it, they're going to get it."

"You bet." Norma nodded. "Gifts like these deserve thank yous."

So after Lorax had a piece of his cake - he shared some of it with Once-ler and Norma too - and the cake was put into the fridge they took Melvin Jr and the wagon into town. At one point they had to stop at a red light.

"Hello Once-ler, Norma...Lorax?" One man said. "You don't visit the town that often, checking on the first tree again?"

"Nah, paying a visit to Ted and Audrey only." Lorax shook his head. "How's your garden coming along?"

"It's going great, thanks to you." The man smiled.

"Well that's thanks to your offerings as well as my love of nature." Lorax smiled.

The light changed to green, so they had to keep going. The man said his goodbyes and Once-ler, Norma, and Lorax returned them.

Yeah, the people had gotten back to giving Lorax offerings, which they left at the new town square statue that had been erected next to the first Truffula tree. You see after the air had started to get better the people tore down the rest of the wall, shut down the air factory, and had sent out for more Truffula seeds and other items they had been deprived of. Among those items were books about nature, including the ones about Lorax. Ted and Audrey were the first ones to get the Lorax books, and so had found out about the offerings. They told the rest of the town about it, wanting Lorax to get back the reverence and respect he used to get in the past.

Finally Once-ler, Norma, and Lorax had arrived at Ted's place. They saw Ted and Audrey in the living room window, so they got off the wagon, went over, and rang the doorbell. Sally opened it.

"Mom, dad." She smiled. "Well this is a pleasant surprise, normally Ted, Audrey, and I come visit you."

"We wanted to see Ted and Audrey about something." Norma smiled.

"Ah, the scarves and cake." Sally smirked. "You figured it out huh?"

"You knew?" Lorax said.

'Well where do you think they made it all?" Sally grinned. "Come inside, Ted and Audrey are just playing a game."

Once-ler, Norma, and Lorax entered the house. They then went into the living room.

"Hi Grampy, Grammy, Lorax." Ted smiled. "What brings you here?"

"Your gifts, that's what." Lorax smiled.

Ted and Audrey blushed.

"I told you they would figure it out." Audrey said.

"I was hoping they wouldn't..." Ted sighed. "Look, guys, please don't thank us or anything. We made those gifts out of love and love doesn't need thanks."

"Well, what about hugs?" Once-ler smiled.

Ted and Audrey had to smile back.

"Love always needs hugs." Audrey smiled.

And so, Ted and Audrey stood up and received hugs from Once-ler, Norma, and even Lorax.

That was enough for Once-ler and Norma, but not for Lorax. However he didn't say anything, he knew that Ted and Audrey would just keep trying to talk him out of a reward. So instead Lorax kept 'wanting to reward them' to himself. After all he was so used to giving something back in exchange for food that he couldn't back down on this one, especially since it was a selfless gift out of love. Selflessness after all always deserves a reward. The problem was, he couldn't think of a good enough reward.


	15. Returns and New Additions

Days later Ted, Sally, Norma, Lorax, and Once-ler were having lunch on the outdoor furniture near the Lurkhim. To their surprise a tall woman with black straight hair and a man and a little boy started walking towards them from the opposite direction of the town. Once-ler, being the host, stood up.

"May I help you?" He asked politely.

"Yes, I'm looking for Once-ler." The woman said.

"Uh, that's me." Once-ler was surprised that anyone outside Thneedville would be looking for him. "Who are you?"

Instead of answering, the woman and man and little boy stared at him.

"You can't be him, you're too young." The woman said.

"Oh yeah...Mother Nature restored my youth and my wife's youth around six months ago." Once-ler explained. "She wanted me to have a second chance at a good life."

"Oh I see." The woman smiled. "Well, my name is Karla, I'm your cousin. This is my husband Ethan and our son Jacob."

Everyone stared at her. That meant that she was Grizelda and Ubb's daughter!

"I know, I look nothing like my mother...thank goodness." Karla chuckled. "You see I heard about you growing up from mom and Aunt Isabella. They said bad things about you, and since I knew that they were bad people I figured that you were actually a good person. Your brothers confirmed that you were a good person, so I wanted to meet you. However I couldn't escape home for a long time, and Brett and Chet were too scared of Aunt Isabella to leave earlier. We finally got the chance when they died. Aunt Isabella died a few months ago and mom died a couple months before that. Dad died around a year before them. After getting everything in order we left and came here."

"Wait, you mean Brett and Chet are here?" Once-ler widened his eyes.

"Yeah-" Karla turned around. "I guess they're still a bit nervous, excuse me."

Karla went down the road and to the bottom of the hill. She came back with two old twins, who stared at Once-ler. One had a short beard and one had no beard at all.

"Once? You really are young again aren't you?" Brett, the beardless one, said. "Chet and I overheard you say that your youth had been restored but we couldn't believe it."

"Yeah, it's true." Once-ler was full of emotions. "I can't believe you came back."

"We wanted to earlier, but we were too scared of mom." Chet hung his head shamefully.

"It's okay, I was kinda scared of her too." Once-ler said comfortingly.

"I'm glad Norma didn't leave you." Brett smiled, remembering that Once-ler said that Norma's youth had been restored as well. "At least she always loved you...we do too."

"I know." Once-ler smiled. "I love you guys too."

The three brothers hugged.

"We're so sorry for being cowards." Chet said.

"You're not really cowards. It was brave of you to come now considering you didn't know what happened to me." Once-ler pulled back to smile at them again.

Brett and Chet smiled back.

"Truthfully, we've always been jealous of you." Brett admitted. "You always were more independent, plus you were lucky to find Norma." He then looked sad. "We never found anyone."

"Mum wanted us to marry rich girls but they weren't interested in us." Chet added. "There probably were poorer girls who liked us but if there were we lost our chances with them."

"Well, you may not have wives or children but you'll always have a brother in me." Once-ler grinned.

"Yeah, we've really missed you." Brett smiled again.

"But I doubt Mother Nature will give us a second chance." Chet frowned.

"No, she probably won't, but that doesn't mean I can't." Once-ler reassured them.

Brett and Chet hugged him again. Once-ler then pulled away.

"Oh, nearly forgot, there are two new members of the family I'd like you to meet." He stepped to the side so that Brett and Chet could see Ted and Sally. "Guys, this is my daughter Sally and my grandson Ted."

"Hi there." Ted smiled. "Thank you for caring about Grampy."

"No problem." Chet smiled back.

"Oh, and I'm sure you remember Lorax." Once-ler added.

"Uh...yeah." Brett winced, knowing that Lorax probably won't give them a warm reception.

"Relax, I'm not going to bite." Lorax chuckled. "I'm still not fond of how you helped to chop down trees, but you care about Beanpole so I'll let it go."

Brett and Chet looked relieved. Brett then looked as if he remembered something.

"Oh, we came here for more than a family reunion." He said. "Once, even though we didn't get the courage to leave mum earlier we did get the courage to do some investigating. We were looking through some old albums and such when we found mum's high school yearbook. We flipped through it and saw that only one guy's photo had been tampered with. Mum had drawn devil horns and such on the photo. We looked him up online, thanks to Karla who is really good with computers, and...well..."

Chet pulled a file out of the bag he was carrying.

"Take a look for yourself." He said. "You'll probably want to sit down."

Once-ler sat down and took the file. He opened it and paled. Inside was a photo of a man...who looked extremely familiar. Ted and Sally got up and peered over One-ler's shoulder. Norma didn't have to because she was sitting next to Once-ler. The three of them dropped their mouths open. Lorax, who was sitting on Once-ler's other side, leaned over for a good look and dropped his mouth open too.

The man looked like Once-ler, only with a square jaw instead of a round one.

Once-ler felt as if his heart stopped. He started breathing heavily.

"It-it can't be..." He said almost breathlessly.

"Well, we think so." Brett said.

"Is-is that your father?" Norma asked.

"He looks like me." Once-ler nearly whispered.

"We did more research...he's still alive." Chet added.

Once-ler looked up with shock. He then turned back to the file and looked through the info. According to the info the man's name was Leroy Wilson, and he was married and had a daughter. And sure enough, he was still alive. Once-ler just continued breathing heavily. He didn't know what to do or say.

"So, would him being your father make him your brothers' father too?" Lorax asked Once-ler.

"No." Chet said. "We're really Once's half-brothers. Mum married our dad...I guess when Once was five...and had us. Dad was a woodcutter, which was how Once and the rest of us learned how to chop down trees. Then dad was killed when a tree fell on him, he didn't correctly predict where it was going to fall. We were teenagers at the time."

Everyone gave Brett and Chet a sympathetic look, except for Once-ler. He already gave his sympathies to them when it happened (Brett and Chet's dad didn't really care about him either) and he was still recovering from finding out more about his father.

"Say, one thing I always wondered was the 'ler' part of your name." Norma remarked. "Look, Leroy's name begins with l-e-r. Maybe your mom saw him in you and so partially named you after him."

"Entirely, I think." Once-ler found his voice. "Mom considered him to be a mistake she wouldn't repeat too." He then sighed and hung his head. "What am I going to do?"

"Well, if I was given the chance to get my father back I'd take it." Ted said.

Once-ler looked at Ted at that. He then smiled and nodded.

"Very well." He decided. "Might as well get it over with anyway."

And so, they all got ready and drove to the town where Leroy Wilson was staying. Well, all except for Audrey and Lorax, for obvious reasons.


	16. True Parents

Once they reached the town they headed for the senior center.

"Hi...we're here to see Leroy Wilson." Once-ler said to one of the nurses.

The nurse stared at him for a moment and then nodded.

"Come with me, he loves having visitors so he'll see you right away." She said.

Once-ler and his family followed the nurse towards an old man and old woman. The old man actually resembled what Once-ler used to look like in his old age, except without the mustache. The old woman obviously was his wife.

"I-I think I'd better see him alone." Once-ler said a bit nervously.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Norma asked.

"No...it's okay."

Once-ler went closer and approached the old man and his wife.

"Leroy Wilson?" He said.

The old man and his wife looked up at him...and dropped their mouths open.

"You...you look like a younger me." The old man said.

"I know...do you know a woman named Isabella? I believe you two went to the same high school." Once-ler wanted to make sure.

Leroy frowned.

"Oh, her." He said bitterly. "Yeah she was my first girlfriend. We were happy at first until I discovered that she was after me for my parents' money. I came from a rich family. However I didn't want to live a rich life, I wanted to help others. When I told her this she got mad at me and we fought. I then dumped her and left town. I was bound for college at the time anyway... Why do you ask?"

"Because...she was my mother." Once-ler admitted, sitting in a chair that faced Leroy and his wife. "Many decades ago, when she was eighteen, she had me. I only look younger than I really am because Mother Nature gave me a second chance at life."

Leroy paled.

"Eighteen? She was seventeen when I left her." Leroy remembered. "Wait...we did have that one night..." Leroy stared at Once-ler. "You're my son?"

"I-I guess so." Once-ler was still really shy.

"I never knew. I guess I left Isabella before she found out." Leroy almost stammered. "How did you find me, I doubt Isabella would've told you much."

"She didn't really tell me anything...she can't now anyway, she died a few months ago." Once-ler explained. "My cousin and half-brothers found out about you and told me. Isabella found another guy and had my half-brothers, and his brother married someone and had my cousin."

"I guess Isabella took it all out on you huh?" Leroy said sympathetically.

"Everything." Once-ler nodded.

He then told them his story. His whole story. Leroy and his wife were stunned by how Isabella treated him and the destruction of the forest, and they weren't the only ones. Their daughter Joan and her family had shown up for a visit as well and so overheard him.

When Once-ler finished he hung his head. He figured that his dad now hated him and he didn't want to see it in his eyes. But instead...

"Well, dating Isabella may have been a mistake." Leroy said. "Chopping down all the trees was definitely a mistake..."

Once-ler cringed.

"But you were never a mistake." Leroy finished, smiling. "I'm proud of you. You care about more than wealth and had a wonderful wife, daughter, and grandson."

Once-ler looked up with disbelief, but sure enough Leroy was looking at him with fatherly love. Once-ler was so touched and happy that he hugged Leroy and sobbed. Leroy hugged Once-ler back and rubbed his back comfortingly.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there for you in the past, but I'm here for you now." Leroy said. "And if I had known about you sooner I would've taken you away from Isabella and given you a real home with a real family."

Once-ler just continued sobbing. Norma, Sally, Ted, and the rest of Once-ler's family then went closer.

"Hi, I'm Norma and this is Sally and Ted." Norma smiled.

The rest of the family introduced themselves too.

"Thank you for bringing my son to me." Leroy smiled at Karla and Brett and Chet.

"Dad?"

Everyone except for Once-ler looked and saw a woman standing there with her husband and daughter.

"Hello Joan." Mrs. Wilson smiled. "Perfect timing, it turns out you have a half-brother."

"So I see." Joan still stared. "I heard everything."

Once-ler now turned around and saw his half-sister. Joan smiled.

"You look like you could be my brother." She said. "So I guess that's what I'll call you...brother."

Once-ler beamed. He had been scared of his dad hating him and now he finds out that not even his half-sister hates him.

The whole family, Wilson, Wiggins, and other, talked for a few hours. Then Leroy made a decision.

"Now that I've been reunited with my son I don't want to be far away from him anymore." He said. "Hun, we're moving to Thneedville."

"You bet we are." Mrs. Wilson grinned.

And you know what? Joan and her husband and son decided to move to Thneedville as well. So the Wilson family packed up and followed Once-ler and the others to Thneedville. They weren't the only ones either, Karla and her family and Brett and Chet had decided to move into Thneedville as well.

Once-ler couldn't be happier. Not only did he get his brothers and wife and daughter back but he had also gained a grandson, three cousins, a sister, a brother-in-law and niece, and even a father. In a way, he had gained a new mother as well. Mrs. Wilson was a much better mom to him than Isabella ever was.

Oh, and he also adopted his dad's last name as his own, which caused Norma to adopt it as well. So they became Once-ler and Norma Wilson. Norma still thought of herself as Mrs. Once-ler though.

However this didn't last very long. The following year Leroy and his wife had died of old age. Once-ler was sad, but he didn't let himself get depressed. He was just grateful to have known his dad for as long as he did.

Once-ler's stepmom died first:

"Thank you for being a better mother than Isabella could ever be, especially to me." Once-ler said to her grave after the funeral.

Then after Leroy died:

"I'll always miss you dad." Once-ler said to his grave. "But I'm glad to have known you even for a year. Thank you for being a real parent to me, for loving me. That's all I ever wanted."

Ted was saddened as well, since he knew what it was like to lose a father after knowing him for a short time. But he and Once-ler were fine, they still had each other and the rest of the family.

Once-ler finally had a real family, and a large one at that.


End file.
